When we do practice jumps we usually jump from “wherever” and the jumps are almost never measured. If we do measure stuff, we just throw down a piece of tape for a pretend board, jump, then mark it in the sand and try to beat that mark on subsequent jumps.
I actually believe this is one of the best ways up until 8th or 9th grade to learn how jump.
As for Nick’s question. Right now, I wouldn’t be measuring any jumps except I wanted to do testing, but I would be hesitant on doing this with jumpers with a high level of competence unless they thoroughly understood they wouldn’t be close to competition distances and when they do hear the distance it won’t have any mental effects on them. I also believe it depends on the athlete and what you are looking for, this time of year I don’t expect the speed I would be looking for during competition, but I would be looking at acceleration(step pattern) and any associated guidance issues with an inconsistent approach. I would be doing a lot of videotaping with lots of marks on the track as reference points.